chapter 5 in communications

Which of the following is a good way to condense sentences while reviewing them? A. By eliminating words that add no meaning to the sentences B. By not combining sentences C. By putting the core of your meaning into the subordinate clause D. By keeping the sentence length and sentence structure consistent E. By keeping the subject and verb of the sentences far apart

A. By eliminating words that add no meaning to the sentences

Which of the following best describes the Plain Writing Act? A. It requires all federal agencies to use clear prose that can be easily understood by the public. B. It governs the writing, publishing, and usage of printing presses in the country. C. It insists that the language used in legal documents should be written more technically. D. It requires all federal agencies to ensure that content used in any document must acknowledge its source. E. It states that all business writing must be directed toward the welfare of the society.

A. It requires all federal agencies to use clear prose that can be easily understood by the public.

Which of the following sentences is in active voice? A. The board of directors will make their decision by the end of the week. B. The verdict from the jury was in favor of the defendant. C. The request from the team was approved by the project manager. D. The second method was recommended by the supervisor. E. The program was implemented by the training department.

A. The board of directors will make their decision by the end of the week.

Which of the following best illustrates a simple sentence? A.The new Bradshaw store on Hutchins Road sells recycled products. B. The new Bradshaw store sells clothes, but it is yet to introduce footwear. C. The new Bradshaw store sells a range of items though the old store does not. D. The new Bradshaw is popular even though the customer service is not great. E. I will visit the Bradshaw store today only if my class ends early.

A.The new Bradshaw store on Hutchins Road sells recycled products

Which of the following correctly differentiates between editing and revising? A. Editing involves making major content changes in a document; revision involves no content changes. B. Editing focuses on changes in the surface of writing; revision focuses on changes in the meaning. C. Editing measures milestones and objectives of a report; revision assesses the feedback on the report. D. Editing involves analyzing the needs of an audience; revision involves taking the views of an audience. E. Editing includes getting feedback from someone else; revision involves correcting spellings and mechanical errors.

B. Editing focuses on changes in the surface of writing; revision focuses on changes in the meaning.

Michelle is writing a report on the strategies she recommends for marketing her company's new line of clothing. In order to generate ideas, Michelle spends ten minutes jotting down all the points she can think of and then stops and picks up points that may work. She continues this process two more times, at the end of which she manages to collect five good ideas to market the new line. Which of the following techniques did Michelle most likely use to generate her ideas? A. Clustering B. Freewriting C. Bypassing D. Proofreading E. Plagiarizing

B. Freewriting

Which of the following is true of traditional term paper style writing? A. It is highly informal. B. It is generally impersonal. C. It pays particular attention to visual impact. D. It uses short sentences. E. It is extremely friendly.

B. It is generally impersonal.

A sentence reads "We must review the feedback that is enclosed within this e-mail and act on the suggestions that the customer has offered us." Which of the following correctly rephrases this sentence to make it less wordy and to reduce the business jargon in contains? A. We must review the feedback enclosed along with this e-mail and then see whether we can act on the customer's suggestions. B. We must review the enclosed feedback and act on the customer's suggestions. C. We must review the feedback which is enclosed and then act on the suggestions offered by the customer. D. We must review the feedback that has been enclosed and then act on the customer's suggestions. E. As per the feedback enclosed herewith, we must act on the customer's suggestions.

B. We must review the enclosed feedback and act on the customer's suggestions.

In which of the following situations should passive voice be used? A. If the verb describes something that the grammatical subject is doing B. When the object receiving the action requires emphasis C. When the material has a lot of big words D. When emphasis needs to be laid on the agent receiving the action E. When a person needs to be made accountable for an action

B. When the object receiving the action requires emphasis

Esmeralda has been asked by her project manager to prepare a report on the environment conservation campaign that she has been working on. Esmeralda is currently composing titles for the different sections of her report and is making brief notes about the significant achievements in her campaign. In which of the following activities in the composing process is Esmeralda primarily engaged? A. Editing B. Writing C. Brainstorming D. Proofreading E. Revising

B. Writing

Which of the following best describes the connotation of a word? A. Two or more meanings of similar sounding words B. A word's literal or dictionary meaning C. Emotional associations that convey an attitude D. The repetition of sound in the first syllable of a word E. The repetition of a consonant two times in short succession

C. Emotional associations that convey an attitude

_____ refer to words that indicate relationships, and the examples for these include words such as "with," "in," and "under." A. Adjectives B. Nouns C. Prepositions D. Pronouns E. Interjections

C. Prepositions

As you write and revise, which of the following can you do to make your writing easier to read at the sentence level? A. Use a consistent sentence structure and length. B. Make your writing wordy so that the same idea can be expressed in many words. C. Use verbs—not nouns—to carry the weight of your sentence. D. Ensure that your document only uses passive voice. E. Use unfamiliar words to draw the attention of readers.

C. Use verbs—not nouns—to carry the weight of your sentence.

Ming, a communications manager at an environmental organization, recently used a certain technique to develop ideas for a campaign. She jotted down the topic name at the center of a sheet of paper and drew a circle around it. She then wrote down all the ideas that came to her mind and circled them too. When this was done, she used colors to highlight and separate groups of related ideas. Which of the following techniques did Ming most likely use to generate her ideas? A. Freewriting B. Automatic writing C. Brainstorming D. Clustering E. Free blogging

D. Clustering

Which of the following correctly differentiates between good business writing style and traditional term paper writing style? A. Good business writing style uses no contractions; traditional term paper writing style uses contractions. B. Good business writing style uses no first and second-person pronouns; traditional term paper writing style primarily uses first-person pronouns. C. Good business writing style makes no effort to make a document friendly; traditional term paper writing style focuses on making a document friendly. D. Good business writing style gives importance to the visual impact of a document; traditional term paper writing style does not pay particular attention to visual impact. E. Good business writing style uses long sentences and paragraphs; traditional term paper writing style uses short sentences and paragraphs.

D. Good business writing style gives importance to the visual impact of a document; traditional term paper writing style does not pay particular attention to visual impact.

Which of the following is true of passive voice in a sentence? A. It clearly establishes responsibility. B. It makes sentences shorter. C. It makes writing more interesting. D. It should be used to avoid assigning blame. E. It can only be in the present tense.

D. It should be used to avoid assigning blame.

Which of the following guidelines should you follow while choosing a level of formality for a business document? A.Use a formal style even if the document is for someone you have interacted with. B. Use contractions if the document is for someone you are not familiar with. C. Avoid using abbreviations in e-mails even if they are part of your group's culture. D. Pay particular attention to your style of writing when conveying bad news. E. Use personal pronouns and second-person in reports to make them more efficient.

D. Pay particular attention to your style of writing when conveying bad news.

Keanu Kekoa, a graduate student, needs to write a report titled "Causes of Land Degradation in Elavia." He is currently researching the issue of degradation, choosing examples of highly degraded farmland areas, and analyzing governmental regulations on farming laws. In which of the following activities in the composing process is Keanu most likely engaged? A. Proofreading B. Writing C. Revising D. Planning E. Editing

D. Planning

Which of the following is a useful guideline to follow in order to manage time efficiently when writing a document? A.Spend only 10 percent of your time revising the draft. B. Use 50 percent of your time analyzing the audience. C. Utilize half of your time organizing your writing. D. Spend one-third of your time writing the document. E. Use half of your time editing the final draft of the document.

D. Spend one-third of your time writing the document.

Hannah, a training coordinator, meets with all the trainers in her organization to generate ideas about how to make their training sessions more interactive. She asks the trainers to begin by sharing all their ideas, without thinking about whether the ideas are relevant. She writes these ideas down on a white board. She says that once they have generated as many ideas as they can, she will zero in on the most useful ones. This scenario best illustrates the process of: A. editing. B. bypassing. C. freewriting. D. brainstorming. E. proofreading.

D. brainstorming.

Which of the following is an example of a compound sentence? A. Phil was awarded employee of the month. B. Jackie is shifting to the new office. C. When the summer holidays are over, the house will be empty. D. Because he has a good credit record with us, we will approve his loan. E. Frankie was in line for a promotion, but he did not get it.

E. Frankie was in line for a promotion, but he did not get it.

Which of the following examples best illustrates a sentence from which business jargon has been removed? A. Please get back to us with a proposal at your earliest convenience. B. As per your request, we have modified this proposal. C. Please do not hesitate to ask questions about the proposal. D. Please be advised that enclosed within this e-mail is the proposal for the project. E. Here is the proposal for the upcoming project.

E. Here is the proposal for the upcoming project.

Which of the following is a characteristic of good business writing style? A. It is not conversational. B. It avoids the use of first-person pronouns. C. It uses technical and scholarly terms. D. It is impersonal in nature. E. It uses short sentences and paragraphs.

E. It uses short sentences and paragraphs.

Adele, a customer executive at a travel agency, is writing a report titled "Creative Strategies to Increase Client Base." She has gathered the information she needs and has compiled the information in her own words into a different format. She has also shared her report with a colleague and has asked him for suggestions. Now, Adele is ensuring that her report does not have any typographical or formatting errors. On which activity of the composing process is Adele currently focusing? A. Writing B. Planning C. Freewriting D. Brainstorming E. Proofreading

E. Proofreading

One of the marketing teams of Amor Inc., a clothing store, has prepared a report on the marketing strategies for its new line of winter clothing. The team is now in the process of mapping the report to the originally stated objectives. In addition, the team has shared the report with the other teams to obtain feedback. In which of the following activities is Amor Inc.'s marketing team primarily engaged? A. Planning B. Proofreading C. Brainstorming D. Writing E. Revising

E. Revising

Which of the following sentences is in passive voice? A. The director of marketing voted in favor of the marketing campaign. B. The marketing campaign will run in the month of March. C. The campaign will target 50,000 customers across New York. D. The marketing campaign took a total of five months to develop. E. The old clientele will be targeted by the new media.

E. The old clientele will be targeted by the new media.

When writing business documents, it is appropriate to use a long word instead of a short word when the long word: A. is less familiar than the short word. B. has a very different connotation than the short word. C. is more technical than the short word. D. has several ambiguous denotations or meanings. E. is the only word that expresses your meaning exactly.

E. is the only word that expresses your meaning exactly.